Wow! MSNBC’s Chuck Todd Notices Obama Is Selling Access To The White House

Actually, this is a double-wow because not only did MSNBC’s Chuck Todd notice that President Obama, through his old-but-new campaign/non-profit organization, has been selling access to the White House, but so did the New York Times.

At least half of the group’s budget will come from a select group of donors who will each contribute or raise $500,000 or more, according to donors and strategists involved in the effort.

Unlike a presidential campaign, Organizing for Action has been set up as a tax-exempt “social welfare group.” That means it is not bound by federal contribution limits, laws that bar White House officials from soliciting contributions, or the stringent reporting requirements for campaigns. In their place, the new group will self-regulate. …

But those contributions will also translate into access, according to donors courted by the president’s aides. Next month, Organizing for Action will hold a “founders summit” at a hotel near the White House, where donors paying $50,000 each will mingle with Mr. Obama’s former campaign manager, Jim Messina, and Mr. Carson, who previously led the White House Office of Public Engagement.

Giving or raising $500,000 or more puts donors on a national advisory board for Mr. Obama’s group and the privilege of attending quarterly meetings with the president, along with other meetings at the White House. Moreover, the new cash demands on Mr. Obama’s top donors and bundlers come as many of them are angling for appointments to administration jobs or ambassadorships.

“It just smells,” said Bob Edgar, the president of Common Cause, which advocates tighter regulation of campaign money. “The president is setting a very bad model setting up this organization.” (Read More)

It’s also illegal. But paying a small fine when reaping huge cash is little deterrent. His soaring rhetoric about paying your fair share is hypocrisy when OFA and Unions aren’t paying taxes on their political action activities and also conceal their individual identities. Apparently the IRS isn’t interested in investigating and harassing them to pay up.